History of the Land
In the 1800s, Hawaiian newspapers faced numerous challenges serving a readership that spanned the entire island chain. These challenges affected all aspects of the business, including obtaining regional news and delivering the papers to far-flung areas lacking infrastructure. To solve these problems, the papers used a geographic network of representatives that included correspondents and agents….
In the mid-1800s, residents of East Maui actively explored opportunities for commercial agriculture. Letters to newspapers in the 1850s urged the construction of ship landings and roadways to transport produce, or described recommended crops for the region. In 1856, the Hana Farmers Association (Ahahui Mahiai o Hana) was established and included members from Kaupo. The…
Being an isolated community, Kaupo residents of old were required to provide their own entertainment, including pastimes such as baseball. In addition to sports, music played an integral role in the district. Historical records paint a picture of a thriving musical scene in Kaupo, and the beauty of the area has inspired songwriters in times…
In times past, many places in Hawaii had terms of endearment, or pet names. For Kaupo, the most famous term of endearment was ua pee pa pohaku, or the rain that makes one hide behind rock walls. The importance of this nickname has warranted an entire article on this site. However, there are other terms…
On any given day, you'll likely hear "Ahulili" on a Hawaiian radio station. The song, by Kaupo native Scott Hai, is regarded as a Hawaiian classic; Amazon Music contains dozens of versions. However, Hai wrote many songs besides "Ahulili". Some of Hai's songs are available in sources such as the Huapala.org Hawaiian music site, but…
Kaupo’s numerous preserved sites have drawn many archeologists and other researchers to visit since the early 1900s. Perhaps the most notable visit occurred 100 years ago, when two Bishop Museum researchers toured Kaupo. From May 2 to May 10, 1922, Kenneth Emory and Thomas Maunupau trekked through Kaupo and neighboring areas, studying archaeological sites and interviewing…
Ancient Hawaiians were fond of using nicknames for geographic areas. In East Maui, Hana was called the land of the low-lying rain (ua lani haʻahaʻa) while neighboring Kipahulu had the “love-snatching wind” (makani kāʻili aloha). These nicknames can be considered epithets, a phrase that describes attributes of a place. Not that epithets for geographic areas…
In ancient Hawaii, grieving death was a public affair. Mourners would often compose and recite chants to show grief. With Westerners came a new means of communication in writing, as well as a tool to rapidly spread writing among the general public in the form of newspapers. Over time, Hawaiians adopted these new technologies of…
The Hawaiian language newspapers of the 1800s printed much more than “hard news”. Their pages were also filled with moolelo: histories, legends and myths that had been passed down orally by generations of Hawaiians. These tales were printed serially, sometimes running for years. The well-known books by historian Samuel Kamakau describing ancient Hawaiian culture and…
In a prominent location in Kaupo, at the junction of Piilani Highway and the road leading to Kaupo Ranch headquarters, lies a notable community building: Kaupo School. The current building is a recreation of the historic 2-classroom schoolhouse torn down in 2019. That schoolhouse was built in 1923, at least according to County tax records,…